Col Nolan Quartet -

Col Nolan is an Australian keyboardist and bandleader, active for two decades on the national jazz scene. He fronted his own quartet and co-led a simultaneous quartet with saxophonist Errol Buddle, which both released albums in 1976 on M7 Records.

Members: Col Nolan (clavinet, piano, electric piano, organ), Laurie Bennett (drums), Bob Bertles (alto saxophone, soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone, flute), Dieter Vogt (acoustic bass, electric bass, trumpet)

Background

The Col Nolan Quartet was active in Sydney by 1973, when keyboardist Col Nolan hired saxophonist Errol Buddle for a residency at the New Push.

Nolan led groups at the El Rocco club through the 1960s and established Col Nolan & the Soul Syndicate, which recorded cut the 1966–68 CBS albums Crazy Crotchet and Whatever It’s Worth, followed by the 1973 Avan-Guard release Live at Jason’s. Nolan also played keyboards with the Daly-Wilson Big Band at the August 1969 Stage Club engagement.

Buddle worked with Nolan for several months at the New Push. When that engagement ended, Buddle recruited Nolan, bassist Dieter Vogt, and drummer Laurie Bennett for a four-night residency at the Rocks Push under the Nolan-Buddle Quartet name. Vogt began trumpet at age 12 and double bass at 17 in Basel, then moved to Sydney and became a foundation member of the Daly-Wilson Big Band. Bennett played drums in the initial Nolan-Buddle lineup at the Rocks Push.

Guitarist Peter Boothman joined the Col Nolan Quartet in 1974 for engagements at the New Rocks Push and other Sydney venues. Boothman began professional work in the late 1960s and taught jazz improvisation and theory at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music in the mid-1970s. Boothman recorded For the Record in 1975 with Nolan and Vogt among the personnel. He left Australia the following year for a six-month trip through the United States.

Saxophonist Bob Bertles returned to Sydney in June 1976 and joined the Col Nolan Quartet for two years. Bertles established himself on the Sydney jazz circuit in the late 1950s and toured nationally with Johnny O’Keefe, the “Wild One” of Fifties Aussie rock ‘n roll. Bertles spent five years with Kiwi rock pioneers Max Merritt & The Meteors, then went to England for a four-year stint with Ian Carr and Nucleus.

Nolan continued the separate Nolan-Buddle Quartet with Buddle, Vogt, and drummer Warren Daly through an M7 recording contract. The Col Nolan Quartet subsequently recorded Arrangements for M7 with percussionist John Sangster and recorder player Errol Buddle as guests.

Discography: